Chamblee student shares cancer message at state capitol

Chamblee Middle School student Cooper Gardner spoke at the Georgia State Capitol on Wednesday about his stage four lymphoma diagnosis during a proclamation recognizing September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Gardner, an eighth-grade student, was diagnosed in June and has been undergoing treatment, according to a press release from the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer – a Sandy Springs nonprofit that raises funds for research and treatments for childhood cancer.

In his speech to the assembled nonprofits and state officials, Gardner said that he went to his dad’s house in Oregon on June 1 for the summer so he could attend his brother’s wedding.

He said his lymph nodes were swollen on both sides of his neck and his body ached at the start of his trip. He had a constant fever and spent a lot of time sleeping, according to the release.

Three days after arriving at his dad’s house, they went to Doernbecher’s Children’s Hospital. Blood samples, a chest X-ray, and an ultrasound of his lymph nodes showed he was very anemic.

Upon his return to Georgia, doctors at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta ran more tests and performed a biopsy.

“The results determined I have stage four Hodgkin’s lymphoma, that is in my spleen and bones and spine as well,” Gardner said in his speech.

Treatment began on July 5 and Gardner has received four rounds of chemotherapy. He said there’s less pain and his fevers are gone.

In December, he will have completed the 12 rounds of chemo. New scans will determine if any cancer remains, and he could receive radiation treatment if the cancer persists.

Rally Foundation founder Dean Crowe thanked those who gathered at the State Capitol, including physicians, researchers, and supporters, members of the Georgia House Representatives, and other childhood cancer organizations.

Since 2005, the Rally Foundation has awarded $29.4 million in grants to more than 500 childhood cancer research projects in the United States and internationally. A Department of Defense medical research program pushed by Rep. Tom Graves of Rome has brought $223 million in funding for 153 cancer research projects because supporters advocated for the funding, Crowe said.

She said #GOLDSTRONG was trademarked for the childhood cancer community to use. As part of the #GOLDSTRONG campaign, the Hartsfield-Jackson International Atlanta Airport’s canopy lights will be lit gold on Sept. 19-23. The King and Queen buildings in Sandy Springs will be lit gold on Sept. 27-29.

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